


beautifully

by the_hero_she_deserves



Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Clair de Lune is such a pretty song, Comfort, Crushes, Cute, Dangan Ronpa Spoilers, Dreams and Nightmares, F/F, Feels, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gentle Kissing, Insecure Iruma Miu, Inspired by Clair de Lune, Inspired by Music, Inventor Iruma Miu, Kindness, Moonlight, New Dangan Ronpa V3 Spoilers, Nightmares, Peace, Pianist Akamatsu Kaede, Piano, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:41:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25413322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_hero_she_deserves/pseuds/the_hero_she_deserves
Summary: How to change the chord progression in Miu's heart? - wonders Kaede.Especially when she's unknowingly changed around so many of my own. - Kaede's thoughts shift from the adagio they were in, to a more peaceful allegro.
Relationships: Akamatsu Kaede/Iruma Miu
Comments: 12
Kudos: 86





	beautifully

It's one of those nights. 

Kaede cannot sleep. There are too many thoughts pressing at the keys inside her mind, creating a beat of unrest to match her heart. If she closes her eyes, she can see the keys to a piano being pressed in a panic - the kind only known to a pianist who cannot keep their time. The metronome is going by too quickly, so that not even the person who set it up to tempo can keep pace. 

That's why she's here. 

* * *

Kaede sits on the bench pulled up by the piano. She's in her research lab, and it's late. Nighttime started hours ago, and it should be sometime around 1:00 AM, but still she cannot seem to make herself drift off into slumber. All that trying when nighttime began, to breathe deeply and push the thoughts out of her mind hadn't worked. Sleeping was a lot harder than anyone made it out to be. 

Kaede releases another sigh as one of her fingers gently pushes down a key. It's a singular note, but it fills the air and breaks the silence. For a brief moment, its sound is enough to break the discordant song playing inside Kaede's mind. Her thoughts crashing all together in such a fashion are soothed as the familiar sound of a piano rings into the air. For a moment, the blonde smiles as she recalls this is something she loves to do. Kaede recalls that the piano is always there for her when she needs it to be. 

There is always a song awaiting her here; all she need do is press at the keys. 

Slowly, she moves her other hand to sit on top of the keys. The ivory of the piano beneath her fingertips feels smooth. Already it has started to calm her. She closes her eyes and doesn't play another note, not yet. First, she's reacquainting herself with her old friend. First, she must run her skin up and down the keys, feeling each groove, each notch, each space where her fingers could, potentially, fit as she played a song. 

Kaede thinks she may just play _Clair de Lune_ for herself. It's a calming song that steadies the beat of the heart, no matter how erratic it may be. If Kaede had to imagine a scene - a painting - for the song, it would simply be a lake at night. The stillness of the water with only its minimal vibrations, sitting beneath a silver moon, as she takes her place at the bench of the piano, readying herself to play. The piano is placed in a forest, and she can hear all the sounds of the life around her. The bugs buzzing, and if her eyes were open, she would see the fireflies taking flight around her. 

The pianist pictures this all in her mind. Her heart begins to slow, and her mind seems much more at a manageable pace, now. The metronome doesn't seem so fast, and she isn't the same panicked musician she was but moments ago. Sleep still will not take her, but she has at least found a way to smile. It's only as she sighs out another breath and readies herself to play the song, in reality, that something startles her. 

The door bursts open. Kaede falls off her bench and over onto the floor. 

"M-Miu?" She stutters as she scrambles to get back to a sitting position. 

"Hahaha! What's up Kaeidiot?" Miu places her hands, confidently, on her hips as she stands with her legs apart. Her eyes are geared downwards at the girl just starting to pull herself up off the floor. 

"Whatcha doin' all the way down there on the floor? Hopin' some lucky boy will walk by and you'll get lucky enough to suck him off?" The inventor questions, but Kaede is used to this by now. 

"That's not what I was doing down there." Kaede answers, still in a rather calm fashion. She's regained her seat at the piano bench. "What are you doing here this late, anyway, Miu? Shouldn't you be asleep by now?" 

"When you've got a golden brain like mine, there's no need for rest! Of course you wouldn't know that!" Miu exclaims as she moves the few paces forward to the piano. 

"So, I take it you can't sleep either?" Kaede asks, with an understanding expression. 

Miu shakes her head. "I heard music or somethin' coming from this particular room. So I thought I'd come check it out and see what kind of weird shit I'd discover. Only a complete and total psycho would be up at 1:00 AM playing classical music!" 

Perhaps, she does have a point - Kaede cannot help but think, for a moment. That's right. Only someone with the nickname 'piano freak' would be here playing classical music to calm themselves down when it's so late, and they cannot sleep. Well, even if she is totally right about such a thing, it isn't going to deter Kaede from playing the masterpiece she's wanted to play since she discovered she had a research lab. 

"So... what are you gonna play? Hopefully it's somethin' good!" Miu bends over so that she's leaning on the piano. Her finger is pointed at Kaede, but her expression does seem intrigued, some. 

* * *

Kaede looks over at her, and for a moment, Miu's chest is all she can focus on. It's pressing up against the piano, after all, and it's seemingly right in her face too; why wouldn't she notice such a thing? Kaede redirects her eyes before Miu can say something, and thankfully the inventor doesn't notice where the pianist had just been looking, anyway. Her eyes pan up to meet Miu's and in the spotlight of her research lab, they look absolutely beautiful. She'd never seen eyes quite as blue before - Kaede thought, to herself. 

In fact, Miu's eyes reminded her of a song: _Arabesque No. 1 by Debussy._

Kaede was always aware of the Ultimate Inventor's beauty, but this was the first time she was seeing it up close. How deep the blue in her eyes looked, yes, but also how they seemed to be so empty too. Miu's full of spirit and life, and has a very strong personality, so why would her eyes be so soft and muted? Kaede briefly played a part of _Arabesque_ in her mind, trying to connect it to Miu's eyes before her. 

"Hello? Earth to Bakamatsu!" Miu waves her hand in front of Kaede's face when the pianist doesn't respond. 

"Huh? Oh, sorry. Um... I was thinking about _Clair de Lune_ by Debussy. It's a calming song that just puts all your worries at ease." Kaede says, with a tone in her voice that's seemingly full of love. 

* * *

Miu wants to make a joke about the guy's name, she even wants to laugh about the title of the song. How the hell should she know what that is or even what it sounds like? - The inventor thinks to herself. Why should she even stick around for it or care? It's just going to be another boring, lame, classical song anyway - Sure, that's what Miu thinks, but none of her thoughts, this time, make it out of her mouth. 

It's the tone in Kaede's voice that steers her away from such commentary. The gentleness of her voice as she watches the words leave her lips. The fact that she sounds like she's really, truly in love with the song. There's a story there, one that Miu doesn't know, but she can't make fun of Kaede for it. Especially not when she has that stupid smile on her face, that's so full of hope that Miu can hardly contain smiling back, or blushing awkwardly like an idiot. 

Miu was always aware of the Ultimate Pianist's beauty, but this was the first time she was seeing it up close. How lovely her voice was, how _it_ almost sounded like a song itself. Miu could see how gentle Kaede truly was, and the kindness she showed to everyone else, was truly a part of the soul. Now that it was just the two of them, Miu knew that the thing she found most beautiful about Kaede was her personality. 

Was she lacking in the rack area? - Certainly, but that didn't mean that her eyes weren't gorgeous. 

Did she have a sense of style? - If a nerdy sweater-vest was considered stylish, then maybe. Of course Kaede didn't have a fashion sense, but her fingers could do wonderful things. This time, Miu wasn't making a perverted joke or even thinking in innuendo. Kaede could make music with her fingertips, and all she had to do was press some keys. It was a finer art that she had been used to, tinkering with machines and metal all day long. 

* * *

"Well, are you gonna sit around starin' at me all day long, or are you going to get to playing it so I can hear what the fuck you're talking about?" Miu folds an arm over her midsection and looks off to the side with a blush on her face. 

A gloved hand comes up and she scratches her cheek, even though it doesn't itch. Kaede, oblivious, scoots in closer to the piano. 

"Oh! Of course!" She replies, happily. 

Kaede's fingers make contact with the keys and the music starts up slowly. The room is filled with music now. It starts off low and small, but grows to a very pretty crescendo. Miu's head makes it way back to Kaede as she plays, unable to look anywhere else. The blush on her face grows as she watches Kaede play. There is a full smile from cheek to cheek on the other girl's face, and her eyes are closed. She looks so peaceful playing the piano - thinks Miu. If the inventor had known that Kaede was this talented from the start, she never would have made fun of her or talked down to her. 

Well, anyway. Miu knew one thing for sure now; Kaede was special. 

* * *

Miu closes her eyes, as well. The melody carries her away from the moment and into her thoughts. Her heart seems amplified by the song, as if it were suddenly connected to a stereo system modified to bring even more volume. Each beat of her heart deepened with a pang of sadness that traveled further in to the inventor's chest. 

Before the Ultimate Inventor realizes, her eyes are watering, unnaturally. She doesn't know why, but, for once she doesn't react to her own emotions. She doesn't carry on and scream 'what the fuck' as she pushes it down and away and wipes the tears, because she doesn't want to seem like some sort of 'pussy who cries at anything'. Miu allows herself, for this one moment, to be weak. She allows her heart to be touched. She allows herself to fall completely into the melody being produced by Kaede's fingertips. It sways and it calms her, and moves her heart in ways it hasn't been moved in years. 

When the song ends, Kaede opens her eyes. The music stops and Miu opens hers, as well. Kaede's eyes widen in concern and she instantly springs up to help Miu. Miu, who doesn't understand why this is happening, can only try to wipe away her tears quickly enough that Kaede won't see them. But, she already has. 

"Oh... Oh my gosh! Miu! I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to make you cry. Wait... why are you crying? If it's my fault, I'm so sorry. Did... did you want to talk about it?" Kaede is immediately at Miu's aid. 

Miu doesn't know what to do. She wants to tell her to 'go fuck yourself' or 'find yourself another pity party'. She wants to make an excuse that she's fine. She wants to tell her that 'this is nothing' and storm off, but, none of that can push out of her mouth. Instead, she wipes the tears and sniffles, and in the meekest voice... 

"Yeah, it is all your fault." Miu feels she can't stand anymore and moves to sit on the bench. Kaede steps aside to make room for Miu, and the inventor takes her seat. She sniffles more and wipes away the tears that do not seem to be letting up. 

It's like someone has turned up the metronome in Miu's heart and it doesn't seem to be slowing any time soon. 

Kaede moves to close the door, briefly, as it had been left open. After, she returns to her seat on the bench, next to Miu. Her fingers are not at the piano. In fact, the pianist is not even facing the keys. Kaede's body is turned towards Miu and her fingertips, instead, are gently resting on the other girl's arm. Miu notices how soft and delicate Kaede's skin really is. She notices how well she takes care of her hands. Well, of course, hands are very important to a pianist - Miu thinks. 

"What kind of lame ass song makes you cry like this anyway?" Miu asks, a moment later. 

Kaede wants to say 'that's the power of music' or 'I'm glad I could move you tonight with my piano playing, even if it made you cry', but none of that makes it out of her mouth. Nothing makes it past her lips, but... 

"Is this really about the music, Miu?" Kaede says so gently that Miu cannot look at her. 

The Ultimate Inventor looks away and sniffles one more time. "W-What kind of question is that? Are you s-serious?" Miu stutters out, weakly. 

Kaede knows it's something else besides the music. She may not be able to hear Miu's thoughts, but Kaede is almost sure she can feel her pulse beneath her skin with her fingers pressed to it gently. It reminds her of the rhythm carried throughout some of the sadder songs she'd come across in her time as a pianist. How slow the tempo would be that she'd have to resist rushing it as she played, and how the feeling just weighed on her body and her soul as the melody resonated. 

"What's the real reason you're here, Miu?" Kaede asks gently. Her hand is already rubbing the skin of Miu's arm, as comfortingly as she can. 

Miu wants to pull away. She wants to yell a 'don't touch me like that, creepo' at her, but again, the words fail her. Miu sighs a breath from her lungs and takes her free hand to dry her eyes once more. 

"I... c-can't sleep." She stutters out. "... I heard you play that note on the piano as I was walking around campus, because... I needed some fresh air." Miu pouts. 

Kaede notices the way her lip sticks out further than the other when she pouts, and the way her whole face just sags when she's upset. It's adorable - Kaede thinks. It reminds her of a puppy dog begging for food. It reminds her even of a small child, disappointed they didn't get what they wanted on Christmas. It fills the pianist with a different chord - one that seems to resonate more happily throughout her entire body. In fact, Miu's served as a good enough distraction that Kaede doesn't even notice - until now - that all of her anxieties have disappeared. The beat of her heart calms back to a resting rhythm; the trick is to get Miu's to return to that same even tempo. 

How to change the chord progression in Miu's heart? - wonders Kaede. 

_Especially when she's unknowingly changed around so many of my own._ \- Kaede's thoughts shift from the adagio they were in, to a more peaceful allegro. 

"Do you have anything on your mind, in particular, Miu? Maybe if I knew what that was, I could help you and-" Kaede begins but is cut off by the inventor. 

"Yeah, right. Don't get ahead of yourself, Bakamatsu!" Miu exclaims, but doesn't dare move away. "But... since it's only the two of us here, and everyone else is busy dreaming about who they're fucking tonight in dreamland...." Even when she seems upset, she's vulgar. 

Kaede wonders why, for a moment, Miu feels the need to be that way. Is there some reason for that? 

"... Look." Miu begins, with another sigh exhaled. "This isn't a cry for help, so don't suddenly think we're friends or anything and that you can help me out n' junk." The inventor states. 

Kaede nods. 

"But... sometimes I get these nightmares. They make me wonder what life would have been like if I had never woken up from that coma I was in. Or... what would have happened if I never had that car accident to begin with? Would I just have been plain and boring and not worth it? If I never had woken up... would I even matter? I mean, sure, it's hard to imagine that I, Miu Iruma, gorgeous girl genius, could be having such horrible dreams, but..." She trails off again. 

"...I-It happens, okay?" Miu recedes back into herself and seems unsure of even her words now, as she says them. The confidence that was there a moment ago is gone, and Miu almost seems like she's a scared child. 

Kaede could say many things. She could laugh and joke that Miu needs to take this moment more seriously, and to _seriously_ tell her the truth. But, as much as she could throw that in her face, Kaede decides to take this moment more seriously too. The pianist moves her hand to Miu's hand. Kaede does not falter, which has Miu feeling strange as their eyes lock. Kaede has this unwavering gaze in her eyes, a gleam that Miu's never seen on anyone before, at least, not up close. It causes her to deepen her blush, but as much as Miu wishes to look away, she can't. She doesn't pull her hand away, either. That hand might as well belong to Kaede now. 

"That really is horrible." Kaede's face softens, only a little. The gentle tone that Miu loves to hear so much reenters the pianist's voice. Miu could fall asleep to Kaede talking if she'd let her. If she wouldn't think it was weird, she'd fall asleep right here, content enough to listen to Kaede playing music all night long. 

"I'm sorry you have to watch those nightmares." Kaede apologizes, and then continues on. "And it happens to all of us at some point. I don't pretend to know what kind of life you had before you came here. If you were involved in such scary things like car crashes or comas. But, I know that this Miu sitting before me is brave for facing those nightmares each and every night. That even when she tries to sleep knowing she'll be confronted by them again, she still tries. That's really admirable. Like really, really admirable, Miu." Kaede's eyes convey the song in her heart. 

A song of friendship. A song of kindness. A song of light, perhaps the light that Miu needed. 

"So... even though I can't protect you from your nightmares because I'm not inside your head... I can promise you that I'll be here for you whenever, so you don't have to face them alone. And any time you want to hear a song, I'll come right here and play it for you. All you have to do is ask." Kaede invites Miu. 

The inventor is starstruck, but the pianist knows by Miu's lack of response the chord has changed inside her heart. Perhaps there is a new sheet of paper ready to be written on in her mind too, a blank slate that, with time, will become a lovely piece of music filled with nothing but uplifting melodies and cheerful harmonies. Perhaps the song will change again, but when it does, Kaede will be there ready to change it, once more. Miu's eyes will never not reflect _Arabesque_ if Kaede has anything to say about it. 

If it's one thing Miu is known for, it's acting without thinking. Miu is impulsive and brash and unpredictable. She does what she wants, when she wants, and seems to enjoy bossing people around. She has an overwhelming presence and a big, strong personality. If Miu was a song, she'd be something bold that catches your attention, and stays on it, for sure. 

So it's no surprise that within the moments following Kaede's words, Miu's lips are forward and pressed to the pianist's pair. They meet with hers, not as one might expect. It is not a clash or fight in the throes of passion. It is not full of lust or something inextinguishable like a flame that's had too much air. It's not even intended to seduce. Instead, the kiss is soft, and temperate. It is not unlike a butterfly, fluttering its wings. Perhaps, Miu's actions carry the song of her heart. 

A song of friendship. A song of trust. A song of a blooming love. 

Kaede closes her eyes and relaxes into Miu's song. She can hear every note, every breath, every beat if she tries hard enough. She can feel every movement, every key, as she plays it in her mind. She can hear a melody even though the piano has not been touched for a while. Kaede returns the kiss, and simply gives Miu's hand a gentle squeeze. Miu doesn't want to pull back, but she doesn't want to ruin this either with herself. Kaede feels the exact same, and for once, is happier to be distracted with Miu underneath the moonlight.

With hesitance, Miu sits back, her eyes flitting open. Kaede echoes the same motion, her hand has still not let go of Miu's from before. The inventor takes her hand back. For a moment, Kaede wonders if she's done something to ruin this moment. For a moment, she thinks she did something wrong, something she shouldn't have. Perhaps, she really didn't mean to do that and she shouldn't have returned the kiss. The dance of thoughts in her mind slows as Miu utters something, softly. It's a question that Kaede just barely hears, even with her enhanced hearing and all. 

"Will... you..." Miu begins slowly. "... play it again? For me?" She finishes her query. Kaede understands why Miu took her hand back now. 

Miu stays, this time, next to Kaede as the pianist adjusts herself to face forward. Her form changes and she suddenly looks like a professional musician again. With that same bright smile on her face, Kaede answers. 

"Of course." It's a soft yes, and a pause, before Kaede begins again. 

Miu allows her head to rest on one of Kaede's shoulders, but the blonde playing the piano does not mind. She closes her eyes and relishes the feeling of Miu's hair tickling her neck. She lives in the moment of the kiss that has just happened. Kaede's smile grows even wider as she's filled with an inexplicable happiness, a more joyful allegro than what's been inside her heart recently. Miu's eyes close too as _Clair de Lune by Debussy_ plays from Kaede's fingertips.

Miu can feel herself begin to fade away. Sleep will take her now. 

And tonight, she will not have nightmares. She'll have just herself sitting in a forest at nighttime by the water, watching the clouds pass in front of the moon. The silver light reflects on the water as the frogs croak and the bugs buzz by. She watches the fireflies take flight and doesn't wonder what would happen if anything had been different. She watches the stars twinkle above her as Kaede plays the piano behind her. 

Beautifully. 


End file.
